UFS chief pharmacist Peter Fell said most of the UFS workforce was struggling under the weight of the labour shortage, with the problem only likely to deepen as the demand for coronavirus vaccines increases over the summer.

"We could probably take on up to 10 pharmacists now without batting an eyelid," Mr Fell said.

"We're at a point where we're even seeing staff that I would have thought were mentally quite resilient and robust identify as finding that they are struggling."

Postings on the recruitment website SEEK reveal the pharmacist shortage is affecting other local pharmacies, with vacancies listed for Crawford's Pharmacy, Ramsay Pharmacy Wendouree, Ballarat Health Services and the two Chemist Warehouses.

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Mr Fell said the reasons for the staff shortage were complex and not yet definitive, but appeared to primarily stem from the impact of the pandemic.

He said border closures had prevented pharmacies from recruiting overseas or interstate workers as they ordinarily would, while the increased demand for pharmacists across the healthcare sector had over-stretched existing staff, causing some to prematurely leave the industry.

"We've been having difficulty recruiting for 18 months to two years," Mr Fell said. "But it's really come to a head in the last four to six months."

"The stress and the workloads associated with it have been getting increasingly more challenging for everybody.

"For whatever reason, a lot of the population seems to think Ballarat is the bottom end of the world, so attracting people out of metropolitan areas has proved increasingly difficult."

In a bid to forestall further staff burnout, Mr Fell said UFS had recently reduced the opening hours at one of its pharmacies. Meanwhile, the likelihood of further partial closures or reduced hours was not remote, with pressure on local pharmacies expected to intensify as demand for coronavirus vaccines increases.

Mr Fell said the federal government's decision to fast-track booster shots in response to the Omicron variant - a decision prompted by revised ATAGI advice - had caused demand for vaccines to go from "moderate to ridiculous" within the space of 24 hours.

"Being short-staffed, it's going to be incredibly difficult for us to meet this demand easily," he said. "And with children [aged 5 -11 years] eligible for vaccination as of 10 January, the workload is only going to go up."

Co-owner of Crawford's Pharmacy Craig Trembath said serious staff shortages had prevented his pharmacy from offering the coronavirus vaccine in the first place.

"We've had ads on three different recruitment agencies for about four months and have not been successful," Mr Trembath said.

"Because of the shortage, we weren't able to provide vaccines because it would have meant we didn't have the staff to accommodate our usual customers."

In a bid to entice workers, Mr Fell said UFS was prepared to accommodate any applicant's preferences with regard to flexible working arrangements, with relocation costs also on offer.

"We're recruiting in New Zealand at the moment and we've been recruiting in the United Kingdom," Mr Fell said.

"We're even happy to take those offshore qualified people who might require a period of supervision before they can be registered.

"We've pretty much been willing to offer someone anything to get them across the line."

The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia said it was aware of "significant" shortages of pharmacists across Australia, which it said was particularly more prevalent in regional and remote areas.

"There is a huge demand for pharmacists right now," a PSA spokesperson said. "Added to this, the spike in demand for coronavirus vaccinations provided by pharmacists has seen the pharmacy workforce stretched."

"The sector needs a considerable increase in funding to drive more pharmacists into the profession to meet the demands both now and into the future."

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